The most important case in New Jersey DWI history is State v. Chun, decided in 2008, which set the standards for DWI defense and prosecution for breath testing cases statewide. Despite significant evidence to the contrary, the New Jersey Supreme Court in Chun determined that the new Draeger Alcotest 7110…
A New Jersey DWI stop, arrest or conviction for an an illegal immigrant involves special and significant concerns. The immigrant has no driver’s license or other documents to establish the privilege to drive or to be in this country, and the arrest and conviction may result in his or her…
Police departments in many towns in New Jersey are now utilizing portable hand held breath testing devices known as preliminary breath testers, or PBT’s. A PBT can either report an actual breath test result in numerical format such as 0.08% breath alcohol, or it can simply show a positive or…
As a New Jersey DWI defense attorney, I always review my client’s prior convictions to determine which, if any, can be overturned or to determine if the effect of the conviction can be minimized for sentencing issues in the current pending case. I have written in this blog quite a…
There are still significant opportunities to defend New Jersey DWI Refusal charges after the New Jersey Supreme Court’s decision in State v. Schmidt on May 26, 2011. The most important thing to remember when addressing the defense of a refusal charge is, never assume that simply being charged with a…
Until May 26, 2011, there was a defense to a refusal charge that you had attempted to blow into the machine, but the machine did not register or accept the breath sample. However, this is no longer a defense. This is how the defense worked: Implied consent warnings are eleven…
New Jersey DWI cases are subject to the sixty day guideline for case resolution in the New Jersey Municipal Court system. However, it is extremely difficult, if not unlikely to resolve a contested DWI in that amount of time. The guideline is just that — a guideline. It is not…
Most New Jersey DWI automobile stops occur when a police officer has personally viewed a traffic violation. The officer then reports the violation in his or her report, and this is then the subject of scrutiny as to whether the officer had the requisite “reasonable articulable suspicion of criminal activity”…
If you are charged with refusal to submit to breath testing in a New Jersey DWI / Refusal case, but you don’t speak English well enough to understand the implied consent warning, you may have a defense to the refusal charge. Refusal convictions require proof that the officer requested that…
In a New Jersey DWI case, there are many documents that the State must provide you so that you can defend your case. This is called “discovery”. The discovery includes everything from the stop of your vehicle, through the roadside testing, to the breath or blood testing, and your release…